The December 1st Countdown

Cross-posted and archived from DC Metro Moms. Original post date November 26, 2007.  Growing up white candles dotted each window in our home on Thanksgiving day. When guests would leave we would turn them on and it was officially the Christmas season in our house. That weekend we would all head out to the tree farm and pick out the perfect tree. We would spend hours decorating it and putting up more lights outside. Our house quickly converted into a winter wonderland that wouldn't come down until after January 1. I loved every minute of it and it created beautiful memories for me as a child and an adult.Now an old married woman I realize I have married the Grinch. How I failed to realize this I do not know. Each year the rules get more stringent than the last. First, it was simply … [Read more...]

Thanksgiving Day is Here. Gobble, Gobble.

Traveling over the holiday? http://widget.nbc.com/videos/nbcshort_at.swf?CXNID=1000004.10045NXC&widID=4727a250e66f9723&clipID=1261478&showID=61&configXML=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nbc.com%2Fservice%2Fvideowidget%2Fparams%2FdmlkZW9faWQ9MTI2MTQ3OA%3D%3D%2F&initXML=http://www.nbc.com%2Fsaturday-night-live%2Fvideo%2Fepisodes%2Finit.xml?videoId=1261478Why don't we have a Thanksgiving song? http://www.hulu.com/embed/8-ilIdzrRUGLejCi4iv9jgHappy Thanksgiving y'all! I'll be watching the Macy's Day parade, running a Turkey Trot and filling myself with cornbread stuffing. I cannot wait! … [Read more...]

Tell Me It Is Worth It

It's a busy here. Actually, when isn't it busy here?  I've got three kids under five.  One of which does all of the following and more in a single day-"Mom! The Comedian has food coloring!"  Yes, she did.  I entered the kitchen just as she was about to squeeze out drops of yellow food coloring onto the kitchen floor. Next to her feet was an uncorked bottle of wine she had also seized from the pantry. I don't know what kind of party she had in mind but I wasn't down with it.  That same day she clogged the upstairs bathroom with toilet paper and then proceeded to take all the paper out and throw it on the bathroom walls.  Before I even got to that I had to pick up an unopened box of ob tampons that were all over the bathroom floor and in the tub.  The … [Read more...]

Where’s Mummy?

Marriage can be hard and so can parenting.  I've been busy cleaning spit balls off my bathroom wall (don't ask) and  also working over at these places.The Find has Unite Hair Products for max shine and volume.  Target unveiled their collaboration with Petit Tresor for babies and Le Baby Hair gel is up too.  I still hate minivans.Mummy's Product Reviews is chocked full with reviews-The 2010 Holiday Gift Guide is up!Kraft Homestyle Mac & CheeseNannies4Hire offers tips on hiring a nannyThe Meat Lover's Meatless Cookbook, by Kim O'DonnelInfantino's Annabel Karmel food productsFrances England 'Mind of My Own' CDEarth Therapeutics Holistic Stress Management KitBook Review- 'Fury' by Koren Zailckas.  Another hit from the author of 'Smashed.'Have a great … [Read more...]

Continuing Education

I feel I have been so serious lately.  I've been focused on getting back to work, getting back into shape, getting into being the mother of three instead of just two little girls.  It is all so time consuming.  Such a massive run around that has me dedicating a lot of time to my own endeavors.  I like it most of the time but it is certainly not balanced and it leads me to writing posts like this one. It stresses me out that I can't continue the path that my parents put me on to complete a college education, it has become difficult with all of the responsibilities that I have, but if I ever get a chance to get back on that path I will definitely call a college admissions counselor to help me with that dream. All the exhaustion has skewed life and made me less communicative too.  Surly, … [Read more...]

The Comedian Turns Two

The last year.  Where did it go? I try to think back and all I see is a haze of pregnancy and randomness.  Now, here we are, celebrating the fact that already The Comedian is two.  I said to H the other day, "It seems like she should be older.  Must be that second kid thing."  Or the fact that she can scale walls like Spiderman, makes H want to put up concertina wire over our balcony, is stealthy as the Invisible Man and can leap tall pieces of furniture in a single bound.  The other night she climbed the coffee table, then her chair and jump off the top of it into her seat all with a single, "Heeyah!" sound.  It was actually quite beautiful.  The grace, the swift, solid movement.  She could be a circus performer, I think.She's clever, … [Read more...]

I’m Grateful for You- Lattes and Life

It's not your typical friendship.  In fact, I can't even remember the last time we saw each other in person.  It might have been at my bachelorette party and that was about ten years ago now.  Remember those things called web rings?  They were all the rage in the new millennium right along with message boards.  Tiffany and I met on one of those message boards. Both new west coasters, trying to find jobs and the only thing we initially had in common was that we were girlfriends of Marines.  We bonded over that and our shared geography.I don't know when we first started breaking away from the message boards and only talking about our boyfriends and their deployments but our first meeting was quite memorable.  We decided to get together at Balboa Park.  … [Read more...]

For My Veterans

When 9/11 happened H and I had been married all of three days.  The 11th was his first day at work and he came home late that night to pack up his gear, just in case.  I knew what I had signed up for as a military wife, but so soon?  I could not fathom what was running through his mind at that point.When H went to Iraq we didn't know when he would come home or if he even would come home.  It was just us in a dusty, desert parking lot hugging good-bye with the words, "Ok. So... I'll see you. Whenever."  Not exactly words a young wife wants to hear.  We had been through long separations before.  Most of our dating relationship was spent apart.  He came home six months later. We were both exceptionally lucky.  It was hard for both of us to deal … [Read more...]

The Wednesday Crank

I don't know what is going on right now but people are seriously cranky out there today.  I have a cold and deadlines and I would much rather be laying in bed watching bad television and nursing this two week long snot-fest but I'm not cranky.  Except when I see this stuff then I get all firey, 'van down by the river', Andy Rooney like cranky- Amazon has a Kindle book for sale that is a 'how to' on pedophilia.  Yes, really. It's got us Twitter folks all up in arms.  Even those who may not have babes in them.  Just sick and wrong Amazon. Flag this as innappropriate, people. Let's get it off the site.That kid from the new 2011 Toyota Highlander commercials.  I sort of want to beat his little snot-nosed, leather bomber wearing jacket self up each time I see … [Read more...]